Despite tightening of regulations and increased scrutiny of unsecured loans, Kissht founder CEO and MD Ranvir Singh says the consumer-lending firm has not only navigated the challenges but also achieved significant growth, including diversification into the secured lending space.
"Indeed, the last 12-18 months have been tumultuous but we are one of the few players who not only came out unscathed but also grew significantly," he said during a fireside chat at Moneycontrol Fintech Conclave in Mumbai on December 18, taking a positive view of regulator's actions.
On a consolidated basis, Kissht reported a 54 percent growth in disbursements at Rs 18,527 crore in FY24 from the previous year, credit rating firm Crisil said.
This led to an increase in assets under management (AUM) to Rs 2,669 crore, up from Rs 1,319 crore the year before.
It reported a consolidated net profit (provisional) of Rs 202 crore, a 3.4x jump from FY23, on a total income of Rs 1,700 crore in FY24, per Crisil.
Kissht offers personal credit to salaried and self-employed individuals through in-house NBFC Si Creva Capital Services along with co-lending partners.
Singh said while many of the regulatory actions, such as stricter guidelines around digital lending, were seen as obstacles, they were well-researched and would be positive in the long run.
"The RBI wants to promote innovation but within a framework where players aren’t flouting the liberties given to some lenders. They want to see new models emerge but also ensure that things are done fairly and transparently,” Singh said.
Singh, one of the founding members of the RBI-appointed SRO Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment (FACE), reiterated the need for compliance, adding that those who followed rules managed to emerge from the tough period stronger.
"For the industry, there are many things that have been positive. Even with the 5 percent FLDG (First Loss Default Guarantee) requirement, some were sceptical but it has brought stability, particularly in terms of co-lending partnerships,” he said.
These partnerships, which Kissht has been pursuing, led to new growth opportunities. “Now, not a fortnight goes by without a large partner reaching out to strike a deal with us,” he said.
Founded by Singh and Krishnan Vishwanathan, OnEMI Technology Solutions Pvt Ltd (operating under the brand name Kissht) has raised about Rs 507 crore since inception from investors, including Vertex Growth, Brunie Investment Agency, Venture East, Sistema and Endiya.
Besides the NBFC subsidiary, it also runs a consumer app, Ring, to offer these loans, enable online and offline payments, bill payments, and UPI transactions.
The firm recently roped in cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar as a strategic investor and brand ambassador.
Towards secured loans
Singh said Kissht’s diversified into secured lending. The company recently discontinued its short-term purchase finance product to focus more on longer-tenured and higher-ticket-size loans.
It led to a slight moderation in its AUM to Rs 2,553 crore in the first quarter of FY25, Crisil said, and took one-time sizeable write-offs, reporting a net loss of Rs 11 crore for the quarter.
Kissht expects profitability to improve and remain comfortable in the coming quarters.
Explaining the reason for the company getting into secured lending, Singh said, “My customer base, every month, people end up taking anywhere between Rs 1,500 crore to Rs 1,800 crore in loans against property (LAP).”
These customers are already part of Kissht’s ecosystem—they've taken loans and have been repaying them. However, Kissht was not able to serve this segment due to lack of appropriate products and the necessary capital. “It is one of those evolutions that can only happen once you’ve built credibility and scale,” he said.
Compared to unsecured lending, secured lending comes with its own set of challenges, including collateral verifications and the need for physical branches. Despite this, the co-founder said there is potential for disruption. “The vast advances in technology have not yet been fully explored in secured lending. We’re at the cusp of something bigger in this sector, just like we saw with unsecured lending five or six years ago,” he said.
Kissht’s approach to secured lending isn’t about traditional, slow processes. “We believe in utilising the lessons from unsecured lending and applying them to secured lending, where we can still offer a fast, tech-driven experience,” Singh said. “We aim to disburse loans in no more than 72 hours—not just a sanction letter, but actual money transferred into the account.”
Singh did acknowledge that the need for branches in secured lending remains, even as they strive for tech-enabled solutions. “The collateralisation involved in secured lending means that branches are still necessary, but we are exploring ways to integrate technology more efficiently,” he said.
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Tapping into the SME opportunity
When asked about SME lending, Singh said, “The opportunity is massive. One of the dilemmas fintechs like us face is that we cannot match the pricing of banks because their cost of funds is much lower than ours.”
Singh said SME and self-employed segments offer significant growth potential. “The old ways of doing business, especially in underwriting self-employed individuals, don’t work anymore,” he said. “But through data, we’ve built the capability to better assess the risks and opportunities in this space.”
For Kissht, the self-employed segment is a key focus. “Forty-two percent of our total unsecured loan disbursements are to people who hold a UDM certificate or are registered under GST,” Singh said. These are primarily small business owners and self-employed individuals, a segment he believes is underserved by traditional banks.
He doesn’t buy into the idea that salaried customers are a safer bet than self-employed ones. “The truth is that self-employed customers often perform better than salaried ones,” Singh argues. “It’s frustrating that the financial system hasn’t fully recognised this yet.”
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